Andrew Lansley has insisted he and his successors as Health Secretary will have a duty to provide a comprehensive health service via the NHS Commissioning Board and CCGs.

The Secretary of State for Health has said it will remain incumbent for those in the position to ensure services currently provided by the NHS.

Speaking at the National Association of Primary Care conference, Mr Lansley said “that is in law, in essence, what is described as a comprehensive health service.”

Changes to the duty of the Secretary of State to provide a comprehensive health service have been one of the most controversial aspects of the Health Bill since its release and its debate in the House of Commons and the House of Lords.

“It’s the duty that has been placed on me and my predecessors for more than 60 years and it will be incumbent on you to discharge that duty in the future - and it will remain incumbent on me and my successors to ensure that through the NHS Commissioning Board and through your CCGs that service is provided,” Mr Lansley told delegates.

The Health Secretary also emphasised the freedoms CCGs would have under the NHS reforms. But he outlined the opportunity would only come with the responsibility to ensure patients have “access to the NHS services” they require.

“You will have the freedom to choose who should support you in taking charge of local health services,” he said. “Clinical senates and clinical networks will be there to advise you, not to tell you what to do.

“You will have the freedom to structure yourselves to meet the needs of your population, providing you involve members of the public, with nursing and secondary care experience on board.”

The meetings and events sector is today recognised as a core revenue stream for academic venues. Sam Booth explains how schools, colleges and universities can give your meeting a degree of excellence.

The majority of academic venues offering conference facilities now function under a dedicated brand with a specialist conference team and, despite operating in a difficult economic environment, the majority have continued to invest in the upkeep and improvement of their facilities. It is because of this that the academic venue provides some of the highest quality conference and events facilities available for event organisers today.

With such large scale purpose built facilities it is not surprising that the academic venue has become the preference for many organisations’ annual conferences and conventions. Combined with state-of-the art audio and visual support, a mix of old and new facilities, and a vast amount of high quality on-site accommodation, they provide a one-stop shop approach to modern conferencing.

Extracurricular facilities

With the addition of some of the more unique sections of the university being opened up for use, they have also become a popular choice for product launches, awards dinners and even large exhibitions. Sports facilities are also another great asset, playing host to tournaments or team building for many different groups.

It is because of the fact that all of these facilities are already in place that the academic venue can offer a competitive price for delegates, unlike many purpose built conference centres or hotels.

However, it is not just the top class facilities or cost effective offering that is attracting event organisers. The sheer amount of supporting research and access to academic speakers at a university is also playing a major influencing factor on choice. Coupled with the fact that the facilities have been built with learning in mind, this element can enhance and enrich an event and in turn help to add credibility and increase delegate engagement too.

School fees

In return, students and academics will benefit from this too with all profits generated being reinvested directly back into the university, giving research programmes and other learning facilities a welcome boost in resources.

The academic venue is a vibrant, unique and highly cultured choice for any event and can help make a significant contribution in paving the way for the country’s next generation of leaders. I would urge anyone to give them a try.

Sam Booth is the Head of Keele Conferences and Events.

European medtech industry association Eucomed will launch a conference pre-vetting system in early 2012 to assess all third-party educational conferences and congresses sponsored by its members.

The new system is the first of its kind in the healthcare industry, because its assessments will be binding.

The independent Eucomed Compliance Panel will assess educational events for compliance with the association’s Code of Ethical Business Practice in relation to such factors as scientific content, location and venue.

Each outcome will be made publicly available via a dedicated website, and relevant stakeholders will be notified.

The Eucomed Code allows member companies to sponsor third-party educational events such as medical congresses, seminars and training courses, subject to restrictions. Until now, members had to establish their compliance independently. The new system will apply a uniform compliance determination process to all Eucomed members.

“The conference pre-vetting system is a unique initiative in the healthcare sector,” said John McLoughlin, Chairman of the Compliance Panel. “It will be supervised solely by our Panel, which is a completely independent body. Eucomed members are required to follow the assessments.

“If a conference receives a negative assessment, Eucomed members may not sponsor either the conference or individual healthcare professionals who wish to attend the conference.”

John Wilkinson, Eucomed’s Chief Executive, added that the new system “is not only necessary for our members in their day-to-day activities but is also key to increasing the consistency and transparency of industry behaviour.”

Eucomed intends to give key stakeholders an opportunity to comment on the assessment criteria.

The pre-vetting system will begin as a pilot and be reviewed 6–12 months after its launch. It will be the sole responsibility of the Compliance Panel.

Eucomed represents 22,500 designers, manufacturers and suppliers of medical technologies in Europe.

Medical technologies that advance the QIPP agenda by saving healthcare providers time and cost were the focus of an event featuring Government and NHS speakers alongside demonstrations of groundbreaking new technologies.

The inaugural Healthcare Efficiency through Technology Expo (pictured), held at Olympia Two, London, combined a high-level conference with an exhibition dedicated to solutions for more efficient patient care.

Speakers at the conference included Dr Mahmood Adil, National QIPP Advisor – Clinical & Finance Engagement at the DH; Lord Nigel Crisp, Permanent Secretary of the Department of Health; and Bob Alexander, Director of NHS Finance.

Dr Adil identified the challenge for the NHS of achieving £20 billion of savings through the QIPP programme, arguing that “Efficiency without quality is unthinkable, and quality without efficiency is unsustainable.”

Dame Fiona Caldicott, Chair of the National Information Governance Board for Health and Social Care, led a discussion on the challenges of information governance and security in the use of electronic healthcare systems.

Chris Chant, Executive Director, Digital at the Cabinet Office, discussed the Government’s digital strategy and said that a new cloud framework, G Cloud, will be in place by the end of this year to help IT providers deliver services to government.

The exhibition featured an area dedicated to Apps and Social Media for Healthcare. A Patient Journey feature, sponsored by 3M, showed the role of technology in pursuing the QIPP agenda in every phase of the care process: primary care, A&E, the operating theatre, the hospital ward and follow-up care at home.

Dr Simon Collins, Clinical Lead, MedOCC, Medway Community Healthcare, called the event “an inspiring and thought-provoking overview of the many ways that technology has been used to improve efficiency and also patient care in many parts of the NHS.”

He added: “I came away inspired that the QIPP agenda may not be such an impossible dream – and that the effective use of technology will be crucial in making it a reality.”

Next year’s Healthcare Efficiency through Technology Expo is set for 23 October 2012.

Former Health Secretary Andy Burnham (pictured) has replaced John Healey as shadow Health Secretary as the Party gears up to contest the coalition Government’s NHS reforms.

Burnham’s appointment follows Healey’s resignation in the wake of the decision by the Labour Party Conference to abandon cabinet (and shadow cabinet) elections.

The shadow cabinet reshuffle comes at a time when health policy is seen as a key priority for Labour in opposition.

Andy Burnham, MP for Leigh, was Health Secretary for the last six months of the previous Government, and was formerly Culture Secretary. He is currently shadow Education Secretary.

The Labour Party’s failure to stop the approval of the Health and Safety Bill by the House of Commons leaves it faced with major challenges in opposing an NHS overhaul that Burnham has called “unnecessary”.

John Healey’s resignation and that of shadow Business Secretary John Denham followed the Labour Party Conference’s approval of leader Ed Miliband’s call for the abolition of Party rules regarding shadow cabinet elections.

The new rules mean that the Party leader has personal control over the selection of the shadow cabinet (or in government, the cabinet).

John Healey, MP for Wentworth and Dearne, served as a Local Government Minister and a Housing Minister in the Brown administration.

In his resignation letter to Ed Miliband, Healey stated that family commitments were the reason for his resignation as shadow Health Minister.

The Health and Social Care Bill has been compared to the Poll Tax in its public unpopularity and potential risk for the Government. However, Liberal Democrat support for the revised Bill has left the Labour Party unable to build on the widespread opposition to it among the medical professions.

Shadow Health Secretary John Healey has been replaced by former health minister Andy Burnham (pictured) as the Labour Party prepares to oppose the NHS reforms.

The appointment follows Healey’s resignation in light of the Party’s decision to abandon cabinet and shadow cabinet elections.

Andy Burnham, MP for Leigh, is currently Education Secretary, but was Health Secretary for the last six months of the previous Government, and formerly worked as Culture Secretary.

Healey’s resignation was joined by Business Secretary John Denham after the Labour Party Conference approved leader Ed Miliband’s call to scrap Party rules regarding shadow cabinet elections and give the Party leader personal control over the selection of cabinet.

In his resignation letter to Ed Miliband, Healey claimed that family commitments were his reason to resign as shadow Health Minister.